


all the world's a stage

by Ffwydriad



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Character Study, Gen, coda to c2e108, non linear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:08:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26281669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ffwydriad/pseuds/Ffwydriad
Summary: he fucking hates the theatre.
Relationships: Artagan & Jester Lavorre
Comments: 3
Kudos: 58





	all the world's a stage

There is a girl in a cage.

There's nothing he loves more, than when mortals visit the Feywild. The very land around them seems to shift with their visit, coming more alive. They always come with such interesting reasons, so full of purpose and adventure, and they leave such beautiful chaos in their wake, either on purpose or on accident.

For all their brief existences, they lead such vibrant and remarkable lives, so strange and full of wonder that even he can't explain. The energy they bring with them is infectious, and he can't help but want to follow, want to explore the furthest reaches of the world.

Hand outstretched, he offers her to take her anywhere she wants, in the world. He offers her freedom, from this cage, offers her a family that wouldn't keep her so locked up, offers her whatever adventures she could dream of, if only she would ask.

The difference this time is, that when he breaks out, there's no way to be followed, no one to bring him back. He steps through the door, and he knows that this time, this time he is free.

"But then my momma would miss me," she says. "And she'd be so sad, and I don't want her to be sad, I want her to be happy! I'm not just going to leave her, she's my momma and I love her."

Here's the truth about the Feywild: nothing ever changes. The same scenes are told, again and again, with only the most occasional changes as to who plays what part. Everything is reset, in the end, no damage is so great it lasts forever. For all the appearance of chaos, it is an orderly place, full of rules and scripts and lines, again and again and again, so utterly, dreadfully boring, because how interesting can something be, when you know how it will always play out?

He's never had someone miss him, before.

"What do you want, then?" he asks. "Surely you must want something"

She's wrapped around his legs so tightly, and she's crying, and she's screaming, begging and pleading, and he's trying to find a way out of this, tries to find the words to make this right and escape these chains but it's imminently clear that this isn't something a few quick words and a bit of misdirection can fix. He's fucked, well and truly, and there's nothing anyone can do to change it, but she's still holding on to him tightly, promising to never let him go.

He promises never to leave her. He swears it. He'll always be there for her, always protect her, always make sure that she's never alone.

How many tragedies has he had to sit through on stage? How many millions of variations of the same damn story. The more you try and change your fate, the more you're damned. Oh, the pointless futility of those foolish mortals filled with hope, that they will be any different than the rest, that their stories will have any different ending, as if it hasn't all been scripted from the start.

He fucking hates the theatre.

Would she have let go? Threatened with an eternity in a cage worse than the one he'd found her in, would she have been able to pull on? Would she have fled to her friends, would they have pulled her back, how badly would she have resisted, when it came down to the wire?

He doesn't want her to leave. He doesn't want to be alone, again, and if she's taught him anything, it's that having a friend there beside you can make all the difference in the world.

There is a girl in a cage, and she's never known anything else.

He's used to cages. He's spent so much time, trapped in them, escaping them, being trapped in them again. He hates them, but he knows them.

Once she's free, though, he's going to make certain nothing ever traps her, not again.

It's not a strong kick, but it works. Her grip falters, and Jester falls, and for the first time in a very long time, he feels utterly alone.

"I think," she says, "I want a friend, because even if I can't leave the Chateau, I can still have fun, if I have a friend with me."

"I can do that," he tells her.

"I've never had a friend before," she tells him.

"Something new for both of us," he says. "I promise you, Jester, that I'm going to be your best friend for as long as you want."

"Pinky swear?" she asks.

"Pinky swear."

**Author's Note:**

> it is times like these where i feel that i deeply match with matt on certain vibes re: characters. 
> 
> feel free to hit me up on tumblr @malaismere!


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